Pathik's Story
by Dudewaldo4
Summary: Pathik's Story is told in first person by Guru Pathik. It tells his story from twelve years before the war when he lived at the Southern Air Temple, all the way to the end of the war when he helped Aang unblock his chakras.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Gyatso**

**12 BSC**

"Looks like I win again, Pathik," Gyatso said with a smile. He flipped the lotus tile he had used as the center point of his strategy.

Gyatso and I had been good friends since I was a child. Although I wasn't born here, he and the other Air Nomads had taken me under their wing when I was a baby. Even thirty-eight years later, we were still good friends.

"That's just crazy," I said. "I don't know how you do it."

"I've been trying to tell you," he said. "The lotus tile may seem like an insignificant piece, but if used well, it can win a game easily."

I frowned. I just didn't get it. I'd been studying his moves closely, but there were so many consecutive, confusing combinations of moves done with the tile, that I couldn't keep up.

I packed away the pieces into the small, brown bag and pulled the strings on the top, closing it. Gyatso's sixty-seven year old hands expertly folded the Pai Sho board and put it on its shelf.

We walked out to the balcony outside the room he slept in. The fruit-pies were done baking in the oven and ready to eat. In this case, however, we were not going to eat them. We looked over at the other four High Monks meditating on the neighboring mountain. We called them "The Grump Bunch" as a private joke. I watched with a grin and a laugh as Gyatso flung the pies at them, propelled by a ball of air. Just another day with Gyatso in what I called "the Golden Age of Happiness."

They landed directly on each of their heads in turn. I laughed with Gyatso. The High Monks consisted of Gyatso, Pasang (the senior monk), Wada, Morioka, and Tashi. I'd never liked Tashi, and I didn't think Gyatso liked him very much either.

We played game of Pai Sho (taking out the board again, as we had thought we weren't going to play another time). After, we walked toward the sanctuary.

As we neared the entrance, I stopped and looked at the statue of Gyatso, erected just a few months ago, in honor of his bending abilities.

"I wish I was a bender," I mumbled. Of course, Gyatso somehow managed to hear me, despite his distance and age.

"There is nothing wrong with being a non-bender," he told me. "Sometimes, I wish I was a different kind of bender, or not a bender at all. The constant practice gets old after a while. In some ways, I envy non-benders."

We walked into the huge tower. I was reminded once again of my lack of abilities as Gyatso opened the huge door to the temple with airbending. We went inside to examine the statues. I looked up at the ceiling, which looked miles high. I could never seem to see the end of the statues of past Avatars that spiraled up the cylindrical walls.

I looked at the innermost statue: Avatar Roku.

"When Roku dies, the next Avatar will be an airbender, right?" I asked.

"Yes, very good."

"I've heard rumors that the Fire Nation has some sort of secret weapon that will allow them to attack and defeat the other nations. Is that true?"

"I don't know if such a thing is true, but why would the Fire Nation want to attack us?"

"I'm not sure, that's just what I've heard. But if the Fire Nation attacks, will Roku join them? Since he's a firebender, I mean."

"I don't believe the Avatar would to such a thing, to join one nation on a quest to destroy the other three. Roku is not only a firebender you know."

"He was born in the Fire Nation however. Did you hear he was once really good friends with Sozin?"

Gyatso grinned. "He was also good friends with me, when he trained here to learn airbending."

"You knew Avatar Roku?" I couldn't believe it! I never knew that before then.

"Yes…" His smile faded. "I knew him well… and then he had to leave to go to the Northern Water Tribe to learn waterbending."

I thought about that for a while as Gyatso looked at the statue of his old friend with a sigh. He had been forced to leave his best friend because of his Avatar duties. I hoped I never had to leave the temple.

"Gyatso," a voice said from the entrance to the sanctuary. It was Morioka. "You have to come see this."

We hurried out of the tower and into the council room. The rest of the high monks were watching a small baby boy playing with some toys. There were four in total, lying around him: a turtle, a fan, a monkey, and a small drum. Gyatso gasped.

"Roku…" he mumbled. I didn't understand.

"What's going on?" I demanded.

"As you know, newborn children choose four toys among thousands here in the air temples," Wada told me. "This young child chose the four relics."

I frowned, not comprehending.

"Each Avatar born among the Air Nomads choose these toys, because four reincarnations ago, those toys were chosen by their past life," he continued. "That Avatar chose those toys because _their_ past life chose them, and so on."

"So… does that mean that this baby is the new Avatar?" I asked.

"Yes, it does," Gyatso said.

I finally understood. Roku had died, Monk Gyatso's dear friend from childhood.

"I… I'm sorry," I mumbled. He did not speak; he closed his eyes and tilted his head down.

He took a deep breath and said, "I'm sorry, Pathik, but I need a few minutes of meditation to clear the thoughts out of my head." He left the room, headed for his.

Now it was my turn to look down, uncomfortable. My eyes rested on the baby, oblivious to what went on. Pasang, Wada, and Morioka walked out of the room without a word, unsure of what to say. Tashi stayed behind with stinging words already prepared.

"You shouldn't stay here anymore, alien," he said venomously. "You don't belong with us. Gyatso doesn't need any distractions as he trains the next Avatar. You already saw what you did, reminding him of Roku, making him explain it to you. He is grieving for his lost friend, and he wouldn't be if it weren't for the foreigner that considers himself a guru of chakras. You should leave, stranger."

I felt my face grow hot.

"Leave," he said again.

I ran out of the room, not sure where I was running. Dark clouds started to gather, and they poured their contents onto me. I shivered as dashed toward my room. Water poured down my face, disguising the tears. I ducked inside the doorway when I finally reached it and slammed the door on the lightning outside. I flopped myself down on the bed and thought about the situation, as the monks had taught me. I had to go talk to Gyatso.

I took a deep breath and knocked on the door, despite the fact Gyatso was probably meditating.

"The door is open."

I gently pushed the door inward and walked inside the room. I was correct, my friend sat on a small rug with his legs crossed, eyes closed, and fingers positioned in a circle.

"I… I'm sorry if I reminded you of Roku earlier," I started. He cut me off before I could continue.

"It was nothing you did that caused my grief; it was my old friend's death," he said with his eyes still closed. "Whether you had or hadn't asked those questions, I would have been upset. Where did you get this misinformation?"

"From Tashi," I told him.

"Tashi doesn't appreciate those who aren't from the Air Temples. Don't let his words hurt you."

"I'm afraid they already have."

Gyatso opened his eyes. "What did he say to you?"

"He told me I don't belong at the Air Temple, and that I would distract you as you help train the Avatar."

"I don't think you will distract me, you will only help me."

I was surprised that Gyatso, assigned the incredible task of training the Avatar, would want _me_ to help him.

"Help you with what? I can't teach him bending."

"You will help him gain spiritual balance."

I was shocked. "You think I could do that? Would… would the other monks let me?"

"Why wouldn't they?"

"Well, I'm not a monk, the Avatar's only supposed to—"

"Listen, Pathik, you are a spiritual brother to _all_ the Air Nomads. You have knowledge and skill at maintaining balance that is equal or greater than any monk I know, you are just as good, or better, than Tashi or anyone else."

I couldn't believe it. Not only was this great monk saying I was worth of teaching the Avatar, he thought I was as balanced and knowledgeable as himself and his peers.

"Thank you, Gyatso."

He chuckled. "You're welcome."

**4 BSC**

"Where is Aang?" I asked Gyatso as we began yet another game of Pai Sho.

"He's off choosing a bison," he said as he placed the lotus tile in the center of the board.

"It's that time already, is it?" I stared at the tile and tried to figure out my next move.

"Yes, and I think Aang will greatly enjoy having a sky bison," Gyatso said, patiently waiting for me to decide.

"Do you think the Fire Nation will attack the other nations?" I asked, changing the topic as I finally came up with a strategy. I placed the wheel tile near his lotus. The wheel tile is also normally considered insignificant; I was trying to duplicate his strategy.

"I think so, and the other high monks are worried. They are planning to tell Aang of his identity early."

"What, before he turns sixteen?"

"Yes, at twelve."

My jaw dropped. "What good will that do?"

"They think I should start the training early, so he might be ready before the Fire Nation attacks, if they do. They also told me…" His voice trailed off as if he decided not to tell me something as he was saying it.

"They also told you what?"

"Nothing, nothing. It's your move."

I rearranged the tiles under my control, wondering what Gyatso was going to say.

Gyatso sighed, then took a deep breath.

"Tashi, with some help from Afiko, has convinced the council you are a distraction to me."

Afiko, Tashi's ally in everything they he did, was unhappy with me as well. He was notable upset when he found out Aang was the Avatar, as he didn't like Aang either. Of course, he found me to blame.

"And… and do you agree?"

He didn't answer.

The lightning flashed again outside as four high monks looked at me sternly. Gyatso sat with his head bowed the whole time. Afiko stood next to Tashi, agreeing with him, as always. They told me to leave them, that I was no longer any help; I couldn't tell Aang about chakras because he'd be busy mastering the numerous levels of airbending, gaining his tattoos. He'd have no time for it before the Fire Nation attacks, when or if they do. I had no reason to be at the temple, other than to distract Gyatso.

The entire time, my only friend in the room said nothing. He didn't make eye contact with me, not anything. I wasn't sure if he was upset, indifferent, or hiding his relief. I will never know.

I realized Pasang was talking but I didn't care. I felt betrayed. I felt helpless, crushed, and for some reason, guilty, as if it was all my fault. I felt like I wanted to run away and hide, but stay in the temple, with the people I loved, even if they hated me. I felt like I couldn't leave my best friend, even if he wanted me gone.

But it was the only thing I could do. I would have to leave my home, my family. I would have to leave everything I knew.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Aang**

**3 BSC**

I picked the leaves from the plants that would heal the wounds of the two boys who had just wrestled out in the courtyard of the city. These two boys had been causing harmless and playful mischief ever since I got here, to Taku. They were best friends, and they fought for fun, usually. When they did argue, they apologized quickly. Everyone knew they loved each other.

I loved these boys. Their names were Mori and Tamaki, and they were both earthbenders. They told me everything they knew about Aang. They said they heard stories from the Air Nomads that came and traded herbs and spices with Taku. The boys talked to the nomads each time they came on their flying bison. Then, next time I had to fix them up, they'd tell me the latest news on the Avatar's training. I didn't go and talk to them myself because of the tensions between them and me.

After being dropped off here on my first (and last) Sky-bison ride, I decided to become an herbalist. I was trained by an old woman named Kuwabara who was a master at the art of healing. She was a waterbender from the Northern Tribe, so she knew how to heal people. Of course, for many wounds, it is necessary to use more than just water, so she learned to use herbs instead. She and some earthbenders built an institute just for this purpose.

Kuwabara was always very mysterious. She hardly ever told me anything about her life at the North Pole. The only thing I knew about her was that she had had a baby girl named Yugoda before she left. She never said why she left, and I never asked.

With only a few months of training, I was considered almost as good as she was. She said it was my knowledge of chakras and energy that helped me figure out where the true point of pain was. As she always told me, where it hurts is not necessarily where the pain is coming from. Currently, Kuwabara was getting water from the river nearby for our cordials. Normally, the apprentice does this kind of work, but Kuwabara saw us as partners.

"So, how did it happen this time?" I asked Mori and Tamaki as I put the leaves into a bowl.

"He said I couldn't beat him in Earth Soccer and I said 'I bet I could!'" Tamaki told me. "And he said 'Nuh-uh!' and I said 'Uh-huh!' and I said 'Nuh-uh!' Wait, no, he said that. Yeah, he said it. And then I said 'Uh-huh!' and he said 'Well let's see!' and I said 'Okay, fine!' So we went and played a game and I won and he threw a rock at me and we started fighting and I got cut and he got cut but then we said sorry and now we're here."

They both had the tendency to use long, endless sentences.

I poured water into the bowl and pounded at the mixture with a pestle.

"Oh yeah, I forgot! Last time the monks came—"

"They told us that Aang is at the thirtieth level of airbending!"

"Really?" I asked them. I took some of the mixture and applied it to their wounds with my fingers. "The thirtieth already…"

Tamaki looked embarrassed. "Um… how many levels are there?"

"There are thirty-six."

"Ha! You didn't know that?" Mori giggled.

"Wow!" Tamaki both exclaimed, ignoring him. "He's really close then!"

"Why do you care so much about this Aang kid anyway?" Mori asked me.

"Oh, no reason, he's just important to an old friend of mine."

They didn't know he was the Avatar.

I walked over to the basin in the corner and washed the salve off my hands.

"Okay, you boys are good to go. Make sure you keep that on you for about a half hour or so, then you can wash it off. Thanks for telling me what you heard."

"You're welcome," they said in unison. "Bye!"

I watched them slide down the flat sides of the incredibly long stairway that led to the rest of Taku. As I did so, I noticed an old man walking up the stairs. He looked like he was ill, so I got the materials I would probably need for examining him. I enjoyed being an herbalist.

**2 BSC**

"What? I thought you said that basil was the best for love spells." I was confused. Kuwabara and I were gathering herbs in the swamp by Taku.

"Ah, yes, but we are trying to make a potion that will draw love _to_ the drinker," my teacher told me, "not make the drinker _fall_ in love. For this mixture, we should use the bloodroot."

"I see."

As we split up and continued to collect more plants, I recalled what Mori and Tamaki had told me a few days ago. They said that Aang was on the thirty-third level of airbending. At age eleven, he was already three levels away from being a master airbender like Gyatso. That was just amazing.

Gyatso was doing a fine job teaching Aang. I wondered that, if I was there, he Aang would be where he was… Were Tashi and Afiko right? I pushed the thought to the back of my mind. I had decided not to think about that ever again.

Apparently, Aang was a great friend to the other children of the temple. He was the "popular" one in the group, and he made up games and ways to entertain himself and his friends. He was learning more quickly than all the other boys.

I noticed I had been absent-mindedly picking the leaves off the correct plants. My choices were accurate, despite my lack of concentration. Perhaps I was a natural.

"Are you ready, Pathik?" Kuwabara asked as she walked up to me. She had a bunch of leaves, stems, flowers, and roots in her hand.

"Yes," I answered. We started to walk back toward the city.

"So, have the twins been telling you much about the Avatar lately?" she asked me.

I stared back at her in shock. "How did you know Aang was the Avatar?"

"Oh, I've been around a while," she said with a grin. "You pick things up."

I could hardly believe it.

"But how on earth could you possibly know about that? Only members of the Council of Elders and myself know that!"

"Are you sure?"

"Well, apparently not, because somehow you know!"

She chuckled as we entered the city. "True."

I waited for her to say more, but she didn't.

When we started to climb up the stairs toward Institute, I said, "I always noticed that when we play Pai Sho, you seem to use the White Lotus tile as the main piece in your strategy."

"And?"

"Well, Gyatso does the same thing. So I was wondering if, well, I don't know…"

She raised an eyebrow. "Well if you don't know what you were going to say, I can't answer your question."

**1 BSC**

"…And then they said that he made his own move called the air scooter and got his tattoos even though he was only at the thirty-fifth level but he's gonna be soon and—"

"Whoa, slow down! You said he got his tattoos?" I asked Mori.

"Yeah!" Tamaki answered for him. He invented his own move!"

"What was it?"

"They called it an air scooter!" they both said. Mori continued, "It's where he makes a ball of air and jumps on it and rides around like a maniac! How cool is that?"

"But he was only at the thirty-fifth level?"

"Apparently the air scooter was just too cool a move, so they gave him his tattoos."

I tried to imagine that little eight-year-old boy I'd seen sporting Air Nomad tattoos. I couldn't.

"Wow," was all I could say. I went back to picking the right leaves in the greenhouse. This time, Mori and Tamaki didn't need any herbs. I was making the dinner of what I considered the spoiled cat of my new apprentice. He was _my_ apprentice, unfortunately. I didn't like him. I was training him because I was the new herbalist. I wish I wasn't, for that was because Kuwabara had died a few months ago.

"Oh yeah, I forgot!" Tamaki said. "The monks told him he was the Avatar!"

My eyes widened. It took me a few seconds to process what he had said.

"What? What was that for?"

"Well, they said your friend Gyatso was worried about the Fire Nation," Mori told me. "And he decided to tell Aang that before he turned sixteen so he can train better. Apparently, now they regret it, because Aang's all freaked out and stuff, 'cause he doesn't think he can do it and stuff and he has to master all four elements and he has to finish the thirty-sixth level and all that."

"So apparently it wasn't too good an idea."

"Is Kotoka's meal ready yet?" a voice asked from the doorway. It was my apprentice, Hebi.

"You guys better go, I have to 'teach' my student," I told the boys.

"Why'd you say 'teach' like that?"

"Because he never listens to anything I tell him," I whispered with a weary smile.

The boys smiled and walked out. Hebi looked at them with an eyebrow raised as they walked past him.

"So is it ready?"

"Yes," I answered. "You should learn how to make this yourself, you know."

He scoffed. "I have more important things to do."

If he wasn't standing there, I would have rolled my eyes. Whoever was the herbalist after _him_ better learn from the book Kuwabara wrote, because Hebi hardly knew anything, and I didn't expect him to learn anytime soon.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Genocide**

**0 BSC/0 ASC**

_"You shouldn't stay here anymore, alien. You don't belong with us. Leave."_

_ I ran out of the room, not sure where I was running. The rain mixed with tears as I dashed across the courtyard, past the statue of the friend I had caused to grieve. Gyatso would forgive me, but all this time he wouldn't _really_ forget what I had done. Eventually, he would want me to leave the temple along with the rest of the High Monks. He would not object to anything they said, and he would let them force me out of the temple. _

_ "You should leave, stranger," I heard Tashi say in my mind._

I bolted upright in my bed in the back room of the Herbalist Institute. I was having the same nightmare again. It was a normal occurrence.

I got out of the bed, fixed the sheets, and washed my face in the basin. As I lifted a towel to dry my face, I heard "Oooh"s and "Aaah"s coming from the town. I quickly got dressed and hurried through the Institute. I passed Hebi, who was supposed to be tending to the aloe plants. Instead, he was sleeping in a chair next to the mixing table.

As I walked through the door, I looked down on the people of Taku, three hundred and sixty-five steps away. Every building had a few people looking out of their doors and windows at the sky. I looked at it as well, and what I saw sent a shiver across my body.

It was a comet. It was streaking across the sky, slowly. Everyone else thought it was a beautiful display, and if there wasn't a chance of it being a sign of the end of peace, I might have thought so too. Nobody else felt the death. I knew that the Fire Nation had used its power to destroy the Air Temples… The Western Temple first, then the…the Southern Temple…the Northern, then the Eastern. An entire race, and the Avatar, destroyed.

"Wow!" a child said from below. "This is so cool!"

"So, do you have any news about Aang?" I asked out of habit the following day.

"No," Tamaki said.

"The Air Nomads didn't come this time for some reason," Mori continued. "I guess they didn't need any herbs."

A sense of dread filled my body. I stopped picking the leaves off the plum blossom.

"Pathik? Are you okay?" Mori asked.

"Yes, yes, I am fine."

I couldn't tell them what had happened. I didn't need to burden them with that information. So I lied to them.

"I, uh, I just remembered that I have to teach Hebi about the many characteristics of, um, flower petals.

"Oh, that's probably not going to turn out well," Tamaki said.

I smiled nervously. "No, probably not."

Mori walked over to the window of the Institute.

"Hey, look, the Fire Nation's here to trade," he said.

I froze. "Oh, are they?" My voice shook slightly. "Well, it's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Are you okay, Pathik?" Tamaki asked. "You seem awfully nervous."

"Yes, yes, I'm fine," I said as I walked over to the window. There were Fire Nation ships coming in to Taku's harbor. This was horrible. I knew what was going to happen. The Fire Nation was going to destroy Taku, one of the world's main trading centers, before anyone even knew it what was happening.

The citizens of Taku rushed to the docks to greet them. They didn't know they would be attacked by the soldiers.

"Hey! HEY!" I screamed. "Don't go near them! RUN!"

They couldn't hear me. They were too far away.

"What are you doing, Pathik?" Mori asked me. "They're just here to trade; it'll be good for us, and for them, I mean they do it all the time, what's the problem this time?"

I ignored him, and just stared at the ships. There was nothing I could do. The firebenders leaped off the ship, not even bothering to turn the prow into a ramp. A tear ran down my cheek as fire erupted from their palms, and they punched fireballs at the citizens, my friends. I saw the flames streak across their faces, scarring them. I heard their screams.

A small joke involuntarily flittered across my mind: _I'm going to need more aloe._

"What's happening, Pathik?" Tamaki asked, breathing hard, too scared to talk in his usual continuous sentences. "Why are they doing this?"

I didn't answer. I was frozen. A man hopped off the ship and slowed himself with a cushion of air. Yes, it was an airbender. It was Afiko.

Even though he was so far away, he made eye contact with me. He had a slight grin on his face. He began to walk purposefully toward the Institute, a few soldiers following him.

How was Afiko still alive? Was he commanding this fleet? Why didn't they kill him along with the other monks?

The answer struck me suddenly. It knocked the breath out of me like a physical blow. Afiko had betrayed the Air Nomads, and given the Fire Nation the information they needed to find the Air Temples. He was the last of his race, and he had caused it to be that way. He was the Last Airbender.

I slammed the doors to the Institute shut and barred them. I stood there, staring at the doors, waiting for the soldiers to reach the top of the steps.

"What do we do, Pathik?" Tamaki asked with anguish.

"We will have to fight them," I answered. I realized that they were the only ones who could do much good. _For I am not a bender…_

I heard a groan from behind me. Hebi walked out of his room in the back of the Institute. He rubbed his sleepy eyes.

"What are _they_ doing here?" he asked snottily.

I nearly laughed at how oblivious he was to the enormity of the situation. That small amount of humor disappeared quickly when I heard pounding on the doors. Afiko was here.

Without any time to prepare, the doors flung open. A burst of flame flew into the room, increasing the temperature by a few degrees around the entire Institute. Afiko first stepped into the room, air swirling around his fists in a drill-like pattern. It was the move he had invented to earn his tattoos. Four soldiers stepped in after him. He glared at me angrily.

"You didn't expect this, did you?" he asked with an evil smile. "No, you thought the Avatar would keep the peace, and stop the strong from destroying the weak, and getting the power they deserved. You thought the Avatar would get all the glory. Well you were wrong. _I_ will get all the glory!"

Mori, Tamaki, and Hebi were frozen in fear. I forced my mouth to move, although I knew we stood no chance against the soldiers and the airbender.

"No. You will be forgotten in history. No one will remember you; you were just the lowlife who wanted power, and thought he could get it by betraying his people and leaving them to die. The Fire Nation will realize you are treacherous, and they will kill you before you get the chance to betray them."

The soldiers shared looks. They understood what I was saying, and they realized the danger. They would report back to Fire Lord Sozin.

"What? Why would I betray my means of power, my allies, my weapons?"

The soldiers glanced at each other again through their helmets.

"Why would you think twice about that, if you were heartless enough to fight your own people?" I asked.

Afiko roared in anger. "How dare you question me! I wasn't heartless; I was wise enough to join the winning side!" He blew a strong gust out of his mouth toward Hebi. My apprentice was pushed toward and through the wall if the Institute, and toward the swamp houses of the city far, far below. I couldn't believe it. I had seen someone die, and I couldn't process the information.

Afiko laughed, regaining his composure. "Why would I think twice about killing a young boy, if I was smart enough to fight the airbenders?" He laughed again at my shock and rage in my eyes. "Oh, I think you might want to know: I personally killed Gyatso."

I screamed. I lunged at his throat, not thinking about the idiocy of what I was doing. He calmly raised his arm, striking me in the chest with his drill. I staggered backward, the breath knocked out of me. Afiko chuckled again.

The soldier beside him suddenly grunted and fell backward, out the door. He fell off the side of the steep steps to meet the same fate as Hebi. I looked over at Tamaki, to see that he was circling stones above his open hand. He had snapped out of his frozen state, and he was fighting back.

Afiko raised an eyebrow as a second soldier was struck in the helmet with the stones. He blew toward Tamaki, as he did to Hebi, but a wall rose up from the ground, stopping the gust. Tamaki stomped the ground, causing a small boulder to spring up from the ground. He kicked it toward Afiko, who nimbly ducked out of the way. He raised his hand, as if in a signal. The remaining two soldiers punched fireballs at the Tamaki. The earthbender raised another wall, but Afiko ran around it with the speed of the wind. By the time Tamaki realized what was happening, it was too late. He was punched in the face with the rock-hard drill.

I had seen Afiko testing his move on piles of hay. The hay was always completely obliterated. There was no way Tamaki had survived.

I looked over at Mori. We had both been watching the short battle in shock. But now, hot tears ran down his face. He had lost his best friend, his brother. Before I could stop him, he summoned a large rock from the floor of the Institute, shattered it in the air, and flung the sharp pieces at Afiko. The boy earthbender didn't stand a chance. Afiko easily redirected the pieces back at Mori. They dug into the boy, killing him. His body fell to the floor next to Tamaki's. Both of them were bleeding heavily.

Afiko laughed again. "Now you see that I have more power than the Avatar did. My soldiers killed him. He didn't stand a chance."

The two soldiers shared nervous glances, as if they hadn't yet told Afiko bad news. I didn't know what that meant, but I didn't care. I had never felt such rage in my life. It consumed all my thoughts. I prepared to charge at Afiko, in hopes that I could at least injure him before he or his soldiers killed me. I needed to do something to him. If I did, that would be the end of my life, but I needed to do something to that…that monster.

Suddenly, a calm sense overtook me. I felt as if I couldn't do that, for I would die. I could not die now, because my purpose in life was not yet fulfilled. My duty was not carried out.

But I had not come to this realization by myself. Some unknown presence had helped me. I felt something with me, a guiding hand, making sure I do what I am meant to do. A spirit? Maybe. Gyatso, perhaps? Who knows?

"Maybe the Avatar was killed, but he will return, in a new body," I reminded him calmly.

"It will take each Avatar a long time to master the elements, too long to stop the Fire Nation before it wipes out the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes."

"Even so, something will stop you. I am sure of it."

He growled, and blew a strong wind at me. I dug my feet into the ground and withstood the blast. I felt my earth chakra grow heavy, and let the energy flow there, weighing me down. I was not moving.

Afiko stopped and stared at me with surprise. "For not being a bender, your abilities are…surprising. But they are insignificant compared to the Fire Nation's."

I snapped off a branch of the plant behind me. It was a bacui berry bush. I flung the branch at the soldiers and Afiko. On impact the berries detached themselves from the branch, bouncing everywhere. Taking advantage of their surprise, I dove toward them, rolled through the three of them, and jumped up, already running down the steps. I heard the soldiers starting to run after me, but then they stopped. Afiko must have halted them. He had no reason to attack me, I was no threat. I heard the treacherous airbender laugh at me from the top of the steps.

As I reached the bottom, I realized what I had to do. I didn't think about it, I just did it, as if I was being guided by a spirit once more. The presence was telling me to leave Taku. I ran out of the city, ducking and dodging as firebenders attacked me. My movements were being guided. I was not hurt at all.

I left the city in tears. The presence left me, and I was alone. I continued running toward the swamp. I did not know what I would do there, I just needed to get away. I had left Mori and Tamaki in the burning city. I had run away, to save myself. The reason of the spirit was gone, and I did not agree with what I had thought before. I should have stayed with my people and…be killed? Yes. I couldn't let it happen to them as I ran selfishly away. I couldn't believe what I had done. I was ashamed.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Wandering

**1 ASC**

I watched as my hands picked the tasteless berries from the small bush. I didn't think about what I was doing, I just did it. I wasn't thinking anything. Only an occasional, echo of a thought would swirl through my mind from time to time, but I let it drift away. I finished picking the berries and continued walking along the mountain path. I stopped at the next bush and took as many berries as I could. This was my life. It had been my life. It would be my life. An empty shell walking along, stopping occasionally, then continuing on. A part of me, a very small part, was still…alive. It was telling me to release those thoughts and continue with my life. But I could not. I felt as if there was something blocking those thoughts, something in the way. I ignored this part of me.

I would wake up in the morning in the cave which I had made my home, drink some water collected in my barrel, and walk outside to collect food, such as the berries. I would eat this food, then go down to the snowmelt river and collect some water. I would walk back to my cave, pour the water in my barrel for the next day, and go to sleep.

This was my life. It had been my life. I would always be my life.

This continued for many years. My conscious self was blocked by some kind of…gunk. I could not entirely control my actions. Yet I felt no need to escape. I could not think about what had happened. What I had done.

**29 ASC**

I watched as my hands held the bucket in the river as the sun sunk closer the horizon, hiding behind the Air Temple on the neighboring mountain as if it were ashamed to show itself. When the bucket was full, I stood up and my legs began to walk toward my cave.

**56 ASC**

I watched as my hands carried the basket to my cave. I tried to taste the berries as I put them in my mouth. But I tasted nothing.

**88 ASC**

I watched as the people walked up the sides of the mountain toward the Northern Air Temple. I looked at them with little interest. Then, I suddenly felt the same presence I had nearly a century ago. _What are they doing that for?_ I thought. _Are they Fire Nation soldiers? Attacking the Air Temple? No, why would they do that? They have no reason to do that, the Nomads are all killed._

It was then that I realized two things. One: These people must have been refugees from the war, fleeing from the Fire Nation, looking for a home. Two: I had just thought. I had somehow, without even noticing myself, escaped the gunk. Perhaps the unknown presence had helped me.

I had to get out of this pit of a life I was leading. At that moment I decided to travel to Ba Sing Se.

**92 ASC**

"Welcome to Ping's Place, I will be your waiter tonight! How may I help you?" I asked a couple as I neared their table.

"I'll have some green tea, please," the woman said.

"Of course," I answered, writing it down on a small pad. "And for you?" I asked the man.

"Yes, I'd like Lychee, thank you."

"Alright, your beverages should be here in just a few moments."

I hurried to the kitchen. On the way I passed my fellow waiter, Usami. I saw beads of sweat run down her face as she walked frantically ran around carrying plates of food.

"Swamped?" I asked her as I passed.

She gave me a look as if to say _What does it look like?_

Usami was my best friend here. She was already working at Ping's Place when I arrived in the capital. She taught me everything I knew, and I learned off of that. I eventually surpassed her in good, fast…I don't know, waiterness? But we were still the best of friends; I told her stories about living with the Air Nomads, and she told me about her cousins in a small village called Gaipan.

I walked into the kitchen and called out to the brewer, "Lychee and Green!"

Dao, the brewer, grunted in response as he took a teapot off the stove and poured another into a cup at the same time. Dao was a burly man, not someone you would expect to be working as a brewer. But he did, and he did a great job.

After arriving in Ba Sing Se, I worked as a waiter in the lower ring. After a man named Ping stopped by and saw me working, he asked if I would work in his restaurant. I quickly agreed, and I was granted an apartment in the middle ring. Me, a one hundred and thirty-nine year-old man! I enjoyed my new job, I loved the people there, and I wished it would never end.

I remembered the gunk that had stopped me from thinking when I was living in the mountains. I could still feel it there, like some kind of sticky, disgusting seaweed. I hoped I would figure out what it was, and find someone who could teach me how to clear it away.

I didn't want to think about the Battle of Taku. I didn't want to remember what had happened to Mori, Tamaki, and Hebi. I couldn't accept that that had happened, so I blocked it from my mind. I told Usami that I had straight to the mountains after living in the Air Temple.

Usami rushed back into the hectic kitchen and took the cup Dao had poured tea into. She rushed back outside with the cup. I wasn't rushed. I was completely in control, knew what I was doing, and I loved it. I walked out of the kitchen to my next table.

"Welcome to Ping's Place, I will be your waiter tonight!"

**94 ASC**

_"You should leave, stranger."_

I woke up panting. I was having the nightmare again. But it wasn't the dream that had woke me up. I was grateful that I heard a loud banging noise. Once I realized what it was, however, I was definitely not grateful. It was the city-wide alarm! Ba Sing Se was under attack!

I ran as fast as I could toward the inner wall, against the panicking crowd. Everyone else was heading toward the palace, which was protected by countless guards. The alarm wouldn't have sounded if the second wall wasn't broken, so somehow, whoever was attacking had managed to do so. They had found a way to break through the outer wall, then charge all the way to the inner. It was miraculous, for them.

The Dai Li ran across the rooftops, rushing to meet the attackers. I did as well, though I used the streets. I wasn't sure why I followed them. I couldn't do anything. I wasn't a bender, and I didn't know how to fight. But I felt the presence again. That mysterious, reappearing spirit that made my decisions for me. I thought it must be telling me to do what's right.

The crowd started the thin, and it became easier for me to run through.

"Pathik!" a voice yelled. "What are you doing, we need to get the palace!"

I looked in the direction of the voice. It was Usami, moving with everyone else.

"I…I know, I just feel as if…as if I need to do this," I said unconvincingly. I couldn't tell her about the presence, she would think I was crazy, but I needed to do what the spirit wanted me to.

Usami raised an eyebrow.

"I know it sounds strange but…"

"Pathik, all citizens need to get inside the palace."

I sighed. "Alright."

We followed the crowd. I walked a little faster, and she did too, keeping pace. I ran into the center of the crowd, ducked down, and ran to the left.

"Pathik? Pathik, where did you go?" I heard her cry. It pained me to leave her, but I felt the spirit's hand leading me toward the outer wall.

I ran away from the pack of civilians and in the direction the agents had. They were too far away by now. They were much too fast for an old man. After getting sufficiently far enough away from the crowd and Usami, I slowed down and panted. After a few seconds, a sword slid around me, in front of my neck. Apparently, someone had made their way past the Dai Li without them noticing, and I was about to pay the price.

"Which way to the Palace?" he demanded. I didn't speak. "Which way to the Palace?" he repeated. I took a deep breath.

"Directly behind you," I told him. "It is at the center of the city."

"Thank you," he replied, and let me go. He ran back toward the wall. I chased after him.

"Agents! Agents!" I yelled in the direction the Dai Li had gone. "There's an intruder here!"

The man's eyes widened. He glared at me while he crouched into a defensive stance. I knew he stood no chance against the countless Dai Li agents. He would be taken prisoner easily.

Two agents appeared from the ground itself. The man punched a fireball at one and swung his sword at the other. A rock wall and a stone gauntlet blocked these attacks effortlessly. After a few more blows, the man was in a desperate situation.

Suddenly, without warning, two more agents leapt toward the man from the rooftops. They made a pulling motion toward the ground, opening a wide chasm. The man jumped to the side, but was attacked by the original two agents. They pushed him coldly. As he fell, the chasm snapped shut.

I stood there in shock. They had killed the man, crushed him. If I hadn't alerted them of his presence, would he have made it back to his camp? If he had made it past the Dai Li once, he could probably have done it again. The man was killed…because of me. I was a killer.

The chasm opened once again, and the agents retrieved the man's crushed body. I looked away. The Dai Li didn't seem to notice me as they inspected his uniform.

"This man was definitely high-ranking," one of the agents said to the other three. "Just look at his armor. It's trimmed with gold."

"Does he have a name on him?" another agent asked.

I heard a boot being removed from a crushed foot.

"Yes, there's a name on the boot. It says…it's a little hard to read…Lu Ten."

I couldn't think anything but _I have killed someone. I have killed someone. I have killed someone. The spirit was wrong. I shouldn't have come here. I have killed someone. I have…killed someone…have…killed…_

I felt my consciousness slip away as the words rang insistently in my head.

_I have killed someone…_

I fell to the ground. I heard the agents run away toward the battle. They had forgotten about me in the excitement of it all.

I sensed the beginning of a dream as my eyes closed. I hoped it wasn't the nightmare.

_I have killed someone…_


End file.
